There were several – some angry – calls and e-mails criticising the speed of the aid relief effort and the role of the media on the reporting of this unfolding crisis.

The round-the-clock news coverage, increasing newspaper column inches and your own input into the conversation has thrown up yet more questions that we think are worth pursuing.

Sylive asked an interesting question our blog. She says: ‘Why can’t the media, just for once, work together and have a ‘Disaster Plan’ where they nominate one crew to cover the story in different languages and then pass it on to all other media outlets throughout the world, free of charge’?

Perhaps we should’ve had a big boss here in London from Newsgathering to explain whether it’s possible to pool footage and resources with other news networks?

Listening to a weary Nick Davis – one of the BBC’s correspondents out in Port-au-Prince – prompted more questions about what sort of support journalists and aid workers are getting out in the field when working in such traumatic conditions.

Finally, Rachel in New York didn’t like the term ‘looting’ to describe the what she thought is a natural survival instinct. She thinks the media have used the word incorrectly and that it has racial overtones. Do you agree? If so, can you think of an alternative term?

Lots to think about here. Have a look back at Mark’s ‘Media Watch’ blog post. Perhaps we’ve only scratched the surface?

Again, please post your questions here.

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You’re raising so many different issues about the earthquake and its aftermath, that we’re inviting a panel of experts to answer your questions. We’re also hoping to have a BBC correspondent in Port-au-Prince. Please post your questions here.

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63 Responses to “On air: Your Haiti questions – updated”

1-Haiti is knowingly battered by poverty and corruption. Could the effect of the earthquake have been less if buildings were constructed according to the norms in areas threatened with earthquakes and cyclones?

2- How far can the international community help Haiti get out of its poverty and have an infrastructure that can withstand major earthquakes and cyclones?

3- Will Haiti be left to deal with its widespread poverty after international earthquake emergency aid is over? What can rich countries do to help it get off the ground politically and economically as there can be a repeat of the political turmoil it had lived prior to the current political situation which is apparently stable only thanks to the presence of UN peacekeeping forces?

From what I have seen on TV and heard on the radio here is that even though aid has arrived it is not getting to many of the people in need.

My Question:
Do people know where to go for help/aid with the communication lines broken down?

Can the aid agencies drop pamphlets with maps of the city showing locations where there is food, water, tents and medical supplies? This will help people to decide and move to places that can provide them with their needs. Until that point the chaos will prevail, after all Port-au-prince is not a small city.

This still requires some form of an airport. Helicopters can go where trucks can’t, but they have a fairly short range. You need a local place to get fuel and supplies from. Then you need a safe landing zone. External loads are not efficient and are rather dangerous. Military LZ teams ( I did some of this in the Marines ) could go on foot to establish these areas. But by the time they could be set up, it is likely bulldozers could clear roads. Trucks are better. Helicopters work best for quick extraction.

It must be wonderful to sit on your butt and criticize US military efforts in Haiti. Given there is a finite number of planes that can land, how would you armchair generals allocate space? Would you give preference to administrators who organize the effort or to a plane load of food? Would you give preference to troops who can keep the peace and allocate resources or would you land a load of water? Since you know everything please tell us how you would allocate space and landing rights. Can you even give credit to the US troops who have served multiplie tours in a war zone who would rather be at home with family rather than another separation? Do you think you are helping the situation by criticizing personnel who are working 22 hr days? Your comments are a joke and unprofessional.

While I hope Lt Gen Ken Keen’s overall assessment is pessimistic, I do wonder about the direct to indirect fatalities ratio in Haiti. How has / will this compare to previous such disasters? Also, even though it falls into the “Define activities guaranteed to merit a Nobel Prize and give your reasons for not having done them.” sort of category, why didn’t the Guantanamo Naval Base have large relief stores? It seems [would have seemed] the perfect place.
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The charities like Doctors Without Borders and Operation USA grew up at a time when politics dictated that governments were unreliable allies in matters of disaster. Has anything changed?

I found the use of former US Presidents Clinton and Bush in the dot.com address of the US relief effort off-putting. The only former US President that has made a passionate commitment to Haiti over many years is Jimmy Carter. Given that former President Carter is still alive and has championed both fair elections in Haiti and the building of homes through Habitat for Humanity, it seems overly political and a bit seedy. Shouldn’t we scrub down from politics when we face disasters?

In the seventies, the great earthquake in Nicaragua toppled a smug dictator and gave the opening that the Sandinistas needed to make a revolution. Haiti clearly has no government to speak of. Can something more egalitarian possibly come out of this?

My understanding is that only six airplanes can be at the Haitian airport at any one time, so no planes can be allowed to land unless another one leaves. Is this because the airport is so small, or is it due to damage from the earthquake? Is anything being done to remedy this?

Also, on the news I heard an unnamed aid worker say he reluctantly admits that they need the US and UK to send in people to restore order, as desperate people are coming close to turning over trucks that come in with aid. Is there any semblance of order beginning now?

Also, to answer David Ben-Ariel’s question, I would imagine Africa did not offer Katrina victims to repatriate because they might have assumed that the US had the resources and infrastructure to take care of the problem, unlike what is available in Haiti.

In a case like this, I think you will find the people fortunate to have a skid loader and diesel fuel for a funeral. Disease control is the biggest threat right now. That means good drinking water and no bodies laying around.

For proper distribution of water, food, medicine, blankets there has to be real security in Port-au-Prince. The marauding gangs of plunderers need to be stopped in their tracks. Shouldnt American and United Nations troops be sent to Port-au-Prince to secure the area before food and essential items are air-dropped in the critical areas? Isn’t this the priority?

Despite our apparent sophistication, our society, technology, etc this goes to show that we are no more masters of our fate than any other being on the planet when nature strikes. We see how quickly society breaks down when cities are destroyed. We have painted ourselves into a corner as once the supply line is gone, we are on our own. Some of us wait for others to bail us out and come to our aid, while the rest just prey on the remains and look to survive at any cost regardless. We have removed ourselves so much from nature, yet we are still subject to its fickle fate. Something goes wrong and we see the whole house of cards come tumbling down. Imagine what will happen if or when the worst predictions of climate change take hold? Haiti would be just a taste of things to come.

A journalist sitting on a BBC panel yesterday pointed out that the American military had gone half way around the world to both Afghanistan and Iraq to wage war without any of the logistical problems experienced in Haiti. Meantime they are unable to mount an equally precise relief operation just 700 miles away in Haiti. Is there any legitimacy to this question and is it fair comparison?

It would be nice to know what is the real reason for the aid remaining in the airport. If it is true that it is due to the damaged roads and infrastructure, I have no issue with that it cannot be helped. However, some news reports say that it is because of the need for security to go with the aid that I find problematic.

I hope that it is not fear of these people, who from what I can see are using considerable restraint in the face of this disaster, that is preventing aid from reaching them.

I am impressed by those there who are doing so much to help, from the Haitian’s themselves, to the international forces that are working so hard. I hope whatever is holding up the aid is resolved so that the people that so desperately need it can get it.

It really pains me as i share my cries with the victims in this country that has underwent alot of unfortunate moments right from political challenges as well as poverty. God be with you Haitians,I LOVE &PRAY FOR YOU !

The question I would like to ask, Since the earth is like a ball so that by extracting billions of barrels of oil by the very deep drilling combined with the past several deep underground atomic bomb explosions testing, be the cause for the kind of earthquakes we have been experiencing?.

Search and rescue has to be the priority,until sound medical advice says otherwise.Then some form of law and order.When a plane lands it should be unloaded,asap.Then sent away,to make room for another.I have not heard anything as to what the Dominican Republic are doing? It is a massive problem.People are doing what they can and working hard,can we ask for more?

I wonder if the UN could just take over the administration of Haiti for a period of time to ensure delivery of aid and security to be established?

* A little background, I lived in Haiti after Baby Doc was ousted. I have travelled throughout Haiti, speak Haiti Creole and I’m definitely familiar with Haiti people and the challenges that exist there. Personally I doubt the ability of the Haitian administration to administer aid or security at this time. Remember they themselves where unable to provide services before the earthquake.

The anticipation of the US aid effort hinges on the EXPECTATION that violence and rioting would preceed its reputation, though the Haitians themselves seem to be behaving remarkably calm – given 6 days of hell.

Also I think any offer of repatriation is non sense. Haitian’s are very proud of their land, they fought for it, it was the first Black Nation governed by Blacks. Offers or consideration of repatriation is a silly response.

Haiti needs foreign administered foreign aid, with security assistance to allow foreign investment a base to take hold of. Personally I would love to set up shop in Haiti, its close to the USA, its cost of production would be very low, but security and rule of law must be established first.

Why isn’t Port Au Prince split into zones where different aid entities have their strength to be able to help the people directly.
Additionally the UN has been such a failure in so many areas of the world I wonder if the Girl from Oxfam really understands the true picture or simply objects to military intervention.
This is not as time for Oxfam’s politics.

As a US citizen, I can say that I would wholeheartedly support the US taking the lead in this effort, and being on the right side of history in international affairs. We certainly haven’t seen enough of that in recent history. In fact I would say that it is absolutely our responsibility as a regional neighbor possessing the resources that we do.

You will hear little about any other country’s aid effort in the American media, that’s why we listen to the BBC. Canda has sent many flights into Haiti this week and has evacuated nearly a thousand from the country. Two of it’s naval ships are there with a another 1,000 troops to be deployed. Canada and Haiti have strong ties as there are many Haitian Canadians in Canada. Canada is going to be fast tracking the immigration of Haitians. I think there are still 1,000 or so Canadians still unaccounted for. There were Cuban field hospitals in Haiti before the earthquake. I would assume they are still operating.

Haitians who can work should stay in Haiti and work in the rebuilding. Children, with at least a relative, should be assimilated by a neighboring country; the US, Canada, etc, so they can continue with their schooling.

Shipping Haitian to Africa would be like sweeping under the carpet the Haitian problem.

I heard on NPR this morning that the IMF wants to “loan” US$120 million to Haiti, and that sounds like “The Shock Doctrine” that Naomi Klein warned us about, taking the opportunity of natural disasters to reduce whole nations to financial indebtedness and to paying interest money for years into the future, and crippling their ability to invest and build their nation to the benefit of their people.

there is a lot of discussion of logistics…Haiti is part of an island…why are all transports going thru port au prince? are there no other available ports or entries vii other parts of the island?
also as a country that is/was in survival mode it seems that people in all parts of Haiti will suffer from lack of necessities very soon, i’m sure most people there only have supplies for a few days at a time. so why arent supplies for the rest of the island not seen as a priority??

The word looting is correctly used here. It is looting if someone forcibly takes what is not theirs even in a crisis!

Who owns the stores that these people are “just grabbing the supplies that they need”, as the last caller suggested? I will tell you… native people who work hard to make a better life for their children.

Why should it not be considered looting if people break into your family’s store or home and steal products and food that your family bought. Those so called “supplies” come from somewhere.

Whatever one thinks or whatever prejudice one has or how the demons at night whisper in your ears about the “evil corporations” the Haitians are human beings and they are in trouble.
The Haitians have suffered a tragedy of Biblical proportions unseen in modern life. They reach out to the world with the simple words “I NEED YOUR HELP” and if we have any humanity at all, we owe them our support. It is the very best of what America does and is but the scale of the tragedy is such that even what America alone can do is not enough, each human being rich or poor, powerful or powerless needs to do something, anything, for the Haitians for they are in need and they are good people.
Do this to save your own life.

I have heard experts mention how the Marshall Plan of 1948, designed to rebuild Europe after the war, helped in the reconstruction of Europe. I have a little problem with that and it is that in Europe after the war Engineers and people with doctoral degrees were still roaming the streets of the devastated areas. Do we have the same kind of people in Haiti? No.

In order to get Haiti out of this catastrophe and help them to have a better future, what we need to do is evacuate anyone who cannot help in the reconstruction; bring in the experts and use the Haitian labour force to rebuild Haiti up to code.

The best place for Haitians is Haiti. Sending them to Africa would be another catastrophe which we are going to regret in the future.

In order that all of us participate in this momentous global conversation,i appeal to the world service to ensure quality signal reception in my residential place in Nakuru,Kenya where the bbc radio can be tuned to but not with enough clarity but even if that is the case i still love the world service for it has transformed my life in several ways including politics,economics and social life among other issues that really make the world in round.Thanks

Instead of killing people who are trying to get food and water, the policy should be to help them break into wherever there is food and water, write down and photograph the incident, and then set up a system so that the owner can apply for compensation for what they lost and also justify themselves for not helping out their fellow man.

And if the owner can give no good reason for withholding lifesaving food and water, they should not be compensated for their loss and they should be sent to jail for some appropriate time to rethink their mistreatment of their fellow man.

the press basically feed/thrives on news like what we have in Haiti now so let no one be deceived into thinking that they will agree on one network to be there for us all. After all, it is the 1st big news of 2010 and every press house worth its salt wants to be seen and counted there. It was the same with Israel’s invasion of the Palestanian teritory around this time last year. By the way what blockade will a few tripods and cameras cause in this crisis. We aren’t talking of OB vans etc today, thanks to technological advancements. Would we want divergence coverage of the news or controlled coverage?

what we need to do for haiti as africans is to send the needed experts there to help them in their re-construction just as how south africa has done by sending them doctors. I agree we don’t have enough experts but this is a crisis and if we agree they are our brothers then we must stretch a helping hand. Three doctors going there to cater for 5000 people’s cost will be less than the 5000 being transported to any african country to be treated by the 3 doctors. Let us examine this issue very well.

————-A new victim of the earthquake emerges as young welterweight boxing champion Andre Berto has withdrawn from his title unification match scheduled for Jan 30th. It was the biggest bout of his career against one of the biggest boxing stars in history, Shane Mosley.

Berto has lost family members in the disaster with the rest being homeless and left scrambling for immediate survival. The stress of the tragedy and trying to arrange new accommodations in a far away land that Hell had forgotten became too much.

Darn shame, but Haitians have a champion in their corner, so God Bless all and God speed with all the good works in the planning. Andre will be back with more motivation than ever.

I know every one on the planet and around the globe has had some constructive and critical criticism,especially on the distribution of supplies and the medical teams to the most affective areas in Port-au-Prince. I would like to share my thoughts and pose my question.
Why hasn’t anyone within the U.N., USAID or the U.S. contacted the Cuban government for medical teams and medical assistance? They are in close proximity, they have some medical teams already in Port-au-Prince and they are able to move quickly with first class field medical units and set up immediately.

They need an alternate staging area for medical personnel & supplies; I recommend the Northern Port and establishing an alternate airfield in the Dominican Republic, near the Port-au-Prince area. Yes, shuttle in medical supplies, medical teams and much needed food and water, via helicopters from the Dominican Republic, in addition to the greatly clogged-up Port-au-Prince airfield.

I heard about the earthquake in Haiti throuh this website. As we all know that Haiti is a poor country and now suffering through a difficult time we should play our role for the rehabilitation of the poor peple of Haiti through money and prayers. Moreover, i emphasize that the negligance of the government or Haiti should not be ignored. Plz contibute even a penni because as we all know QATREY QATREY SEY HE DARYA BANTA HY.

Can you explain why the nearest Neighbour to Haiti Dominican Republic has not responded in any significant way to the Disaster, why were their facilities Airport & Sea Port not used in the first Instants from Miami only one thousand miles away 3days by ship.
Does it come down to Politics and religion that the World or Caribbean Countries took so long to get relief into Port au Prince, and restore law and order before government.
We supply St. Helena in the South Atlantic, with one Old Ship from Southampton and a couple of Barges floated out to the anchorage in the Island, come on search out the answers from the United Nations.

It will be to the eternal shame of the U.S. military that, until today, they had blocked the direct dropping of aid to those who needed it. Rather than doing so, they insisted on getting their bootprints firmly imprinted first. Leaving tens of thousands to go thirsty and hungry, because the recipients weren’t first forced to take their aid from the hand of a U.S. serviceman to whom they would have to say “Merci”.
If the U.S. military is going to set itself up as boss in such a situation, then it really would be best if their first concern was for the thirsty and hungry and, how best to serve their immediate needs. Surely, hegemony can wait until day 2?

Caricom (the Caribbean Community and Common Market) of which Haiti is a member was slow in its response to the devastation in Haiti. The PM of Trinidad and Tobago pledged 1M USD but said he had to wait on the CARICOM fact finding mission before taking any further action. Meanwhile, the citizens of my country didn’t wait, we mobilized almost immediately to send donations of food, medical supplies etc to Haiti. One local NGO has been working in Haiti for about 7 years now and are familiar with conditions there.
I understand that US helicopters are now dropping food parcels for the people but why did it take so long for this to happen? There are personnel in the UN and the developed countries who are accustomed to dealing with these disasters, isn’t there a plan? But while asking this, citizens and governments of many developed countries reacted swiftly by sending experts and aid to Haiti. May God bless them all.
As clichéd as this may sound, I do pray that a new and better Haiti rises from the rubble of the earthquake.

One thing bothers me in these posts. Most people lump the victims as justifiably desperate to the point of violence or as stoic saints in the face of adversity. I am certain some fit one description or the other most of the time. Most probably have moments of both. But both exist.

When it comes to giving aid, like in anything else, it is best to plan for the worst and adapt to the best. No matter what, I guarantee you will see heroic successes and glaring failures. And people will love to make a big issue of both.

Will there now be a occupation of haiti by the UN and to a greater extent the U.S forces? and if so how long? will the haitians ever recover from not only this devasting situation but from there familiar economic slump???

The Cubans were in their first. They already had doctors on the ground at the time of the earthquake, because of their “soft diplomacy” policy. They got another 6 or 700 in even before others had set a plane down in Port Au Prince.

They set up field hospitals and then took over several hospitals, the first in Delmas 33.

But like the other medical groups they have run out of a lot of supplies. Which is not understandable, because that first hospital is not very far from the airport.

Haiti,earthquake it’s the catastrophe in the world witch is makes my personnaly afraid because it s more than the war, a lot of people were died, my condolences for those people.i’ d like to know i need to help to serve to haiti as volunteer what can i do?
What’s the condition?
My regard,

So, eventually it is about going global on information exchange; whether it is the physical or electric/electronic media, the dire need of cooperation and coordination cannot be over-stated or under-estimated.